System and method for integration of communication systems with computer-based information systems

ABSTRACT

A system and method for providing data communication between an information system, such as a LAN, and a communication system, such as a PBX operating under control of an automatic call routing system, is disclosed. According to a preferred embodiment, data as to a particular LAN users schedule, as reflected in an electronic calendar application, is used to properly route calls via the automatic call routing system. Alternative embodiments providing for the scheduling of events in the electronic calendar as well as the dissemination of information through the communication system are also disclosed.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is related generally to voice mail and callprocessing systems. More particularly, the invention is directed tointegration of voice mail and call processing systems with computerbased applications such as an electronic calendar.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In a typical office environment, local area network (LAN) basedapplications, such as scheduling and time management calendar packages,are commonly used. These applications are generally personal computer(PC) or LAN work station executable packages, and can provide a usersuch features as presenting an electronic representation of a calendar,schedule, or the like. Moreover, the user may be allowed to alter theinformation presented, such as schedule certain events, just as she/hewould on a hard copy, or paper, version of the representation.

The benefit of these LAN based applications is that their informationmay be shared, such as where multiple users share their individualcalendars. As a result, users can determine if others are available atcertain times, they can schedule meetings with other people, they canmake appointments on another user's calendar, or the like. Such systemspresent an efficient method of interacting with a work group and, thus,are used quite often in the office setting.

Likewise, communication systems, such as voice mail systems andautomatic call routing systems, are commonly used in officeenvironments. Generally, voice mail systems allow callers to leave amessage if the call is not answered by a user or if the user's line isbusy. Such systems typically provide for user or administratordefinition of a limited number of features. For example, a user cantypically direct the voice mail system to present a custom greetingmessage.

Likewise, an administrator or user can typically direct the automaticcall routing system to route calls to a voice mail system when itdetects a user on the phone to which a call is initially directed.Additionally, a user might be allowed to direct the automatic callrouting system to forward incoming calls initially intended for theuser's regular telephone number to another number.

Although providing limited user configurability, as described above, thecommunication systems in common use today provide very little usercontrol other than modification of some basic user parameters such as tocustomize the interface that is presented to callers, the order of phonenumbers to which to direct calls, etc. Furthermore, as these systems areoften discrete systems, customization of such parameters often requiresduplicative efforts on the part of the user in addition to requiringknowledge of the operation and programming of distinct system.

Information provided by a user in the aforementioned PC or LANapplications might also be relevant to the communication system.However, since these applications and the telephony systems do notprovide an acceptable form of interface, the user must provide thepertinent information to both the computer application as well as thecommunication system.

Clearly these systems, although commonly used, could be much moreefficient if linked together. Therefore, a need exists in the art forthe linking, or interfacing, of communication and information processingsystems so as to more efficiently utilize relevant informationtherebetween.

Additionally, a need exists in the art for a system and method whichprovides real-time interaction between information systems andcommunication systems so as to enable single entry input of informationwith respect to both such systems.

A further need in the art exists for the interface between suchdisparate systems to moderate intercommunication so as to provideinterfacing without the need for significant modification of existinggeneral purpose systems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

These and other objects, features and technical advantages are achievedby a system and method in which a communication system, such as a voicemail and/or automatic call routing system (a one number call system),takes advantage of the fact that computer applications havinginformation relevant to call handling services stored therein, such ascalendar programs, exist. Accordingly, the present invention looks at,in real-time on a call-by-call basis, information available within suchapplications. For example, a preferred embodiment the present inventiondetermines the availability of individuals for taking calls throughreference to electronic calendar information. As such, call handlingdeterminations may be accurately made without ever necessarilypresenting that call to the user's telephone.

For instance, if a user is scheduled in a meeting, as indicated on theirelectronic calendar, there is typically no reason for the automatic callrouting system to attempt to call to this individual's office. Theautomatic call routing system could instead respond to the caller bypresenting a message such as, "Mr. Smith is in a meeting right now. Doyou care to leave a message?".

Additionally, according to the present invention, a user may indicate ina particular computer application, such as the aforementioned calendarprogram, numbers at which she/he might be reached. The automatic callrouting system may then take advantage of these numbers and place callsback through the network in order to reach the user at some locationother than the office.

Preferably, the interaction provided between the communication systemand the computer application is accomplished with a minimum ofmodification of either system. For example, where a particular computerapplication is utilized for which its data structure is known, thepresent invention may be adapted to parse from this data structure thedata necessary for interfacing with the communication system withoutnecessitating any changes within the computer application itself.Likewise, the present invention may supply this information to thecommunication system through an existing interface, such as apreestablished administrator interface, so as to require no modificationof this system. Of course, provision of information in the reversechannel may be similarly accomplished so as to require no modificationof existing systems.

Therefore, it shall be appreciated that a technical advantage of thepresent invention is that a useful link, or interface, is providedbetween communication and information processing systems which arecommonly deployed in an office environment so as to more efficientlyutilize relevant information therebetween.

A further technical advantage is presented in that the present inventionprovides real-time interaction between a computer application and acommunication system so as to enable single entry input of informationuseful in both such systems.

A still further technical advantage is realized through the presentinvention's ability to provide an interface between discrete anddisparate systems without the need for their modification.

The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technicaladvantages of the present invention in order that the detaileddescription of the invention that follows may be better understood.Additional features and advantages of the invention will be describedhereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the invention. Itshould be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conceptionand the specific embodiment disclosed may be readily utilized as a basisfor modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the samepurposes of the present invention. It should also be realized by thoseskilled in the art that such equivalent constructions do not depart fromthe spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appendedclaims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, and theadvantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptionstaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a typical prior art deployment of discrete officesystems including a telephony based communication system and a computernetwork based information system;

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of the translation of data from an informationsystem to a communication system according to a preferred embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of the management of data according to apreferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of the solicitation of information system datafrom a communication system caller according to a preferred embodimentof the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of the dissemination of information system datathrough the communication system according to a preferred embodiment ofthe present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In order to better understand the features and benefits of the presentinvention, a brief description of a typical deployment of prior artoffice systems is given. Directing attention to FIG. 2, an exemplarydeployment of an information system 21 and communication system 22 isillustrated.

In the prior art, a typical office information system, such asinformation system 21, is comprised of a local area network (LAN) orwide area network (WAN) 202 connecting work stations 203 and server 201.In many systems some form of remote access server 205 is connected tothe LAN/WAN 202 to allow access between system 21 and a remote workstation 207, such as through public switched network (PSN) 206. Thisallows remote work station 207 to share files and/or information withwork stations 203 and/or server 201. Typically, individual work stations203 can also access PSN 206, either through remote access server 205 orby a direct connection, such as a local work station modem. Byconnecting to PSN 206, work stations 203 can access other networks,databases, the Internet, or the like.

Generally, an office environment includes a communication system, suchas telephone communication system 22, connected to PSN 206, such asthrough PBX switching system 208. Call processing system 209 may beattached to PBX 208 to run voice mail, call director and one numberapplications. Generally, these telephone communication applications aremanaged independently from the other office systems. In most cases, PBX208 and call processing system 209 are not integrated with the officeinformation system, or any other portion of the office environment forthat matter.

Presently, there are no standards or systems available which provide anintegrated solution to allow communication system 21 to take advantageof information available within information system 22, such as a LANbased or work station based calendar application. For example, in thevoice mail, call director and one number systems that exist today, thereare generally only two types of interfaces which are used to configureor manage those systems. One such interface provides a management ormaintenance interface, allowing for initial system configuration andparameter setting. This interface is typically used by a systemadministrator or manager. The other system interface is telephone based.This allows users to control their individual voice mail or calldirector applications. For example, each user can set specific options,such as directing where calls should be routed or selecting apersonalized greeting message.

Occasionally, PC based applications are provided which allow access tovoice mail and call director systems via the Internet or directconnection. However, these PC based applications are separate from theother work station or LAN based applications, i.e., they do not providea common interface for data intercommunication. For example, even wherea PC based application provides access to a communication system in theprior art, data already available within an electronic calendarapplication operating upon the same PC system would not be available tothe communication system without re-entry. This so because the calendarapplication, or other PC based application, is not integrated with thecommunication system. Therefore, if the user were leaving on vacation,he would not only mark his planned absence on the calendar, but he wouldalso need to update the voice mail system to indicate that the systemshould play a customized greeting message or to forward his callsappropriately.

However, according to the present invention, information availablewithin information system 22, such as within a calendar application, canbe provided in real time to a voice mail, call director, one numbersystem or other communication system application so that thecommunication system can make intelligent determinations, such as callrouting decisions and determinations as to user availability.Accordingly, the present invention brings these two technologiestogether to operate as a single system, a preferred embodiment of whichis illustrated in FIG. 1.

It shall be appreciated that the present invention may be embodiedwithin any number of processing systems. For example, the presentinvention may be embodied within a general purpose processor-basedsystem interfaced so as to provide a data interface between informationsystem 21 and communication system 22. Alternatively, the presentinvention may be embodied within communication system 22 having someavailable processing and storage capacity, provided the communicationsystem includes, or is adaptable to include, a data interface withinformation system 21.

System 10 of the present invention integrates a typical voice mail andcall processing system, or other communication system application, witha PC or LAN based application, such as an electronic calendar. Database101 is preferably part of, or otherwise connected to, LAN 202illustrated in FIG. 2 in order that individual files or information maybe shared among system users or devices. The files stored on database101 may include, for example, those associated with an electroniccalendar containing calendar schedule information. It is such electroniccalendar files and information that shall be discussed herein withreference to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. However,it shall be appreciated that the present invention is not limited to theuse of electronic calendar information and, in fact, is adaptable forintegration of any number of information systems with communicationsystems.

There are a number of LAN or PC based calendar applications available onthe market from different vendors. Typically, each such calendarapplication uses a different, or proprietary, data format such thatthere is no standardized format for the exchange of data among theseapplications. Therefore, the calendar data stored in database 101 can bein any number of formats depending upon the specific electronic calendarapplication used.

Generally, an electronic calendar application allows the user to selecta specific day, month and year and then displays a chronological list ofevents for the chosen day. The events will usually relate to specificmeetings or appointments, or to times when the user will or will not bein his/her office. The duration of the scheduled events may vary from anumber of minutes, for example denoting a short meeting, to whole weeksor months, denoting such events as business trips or vacations.

For example, monthly calendar 102 is a representation of a calendar thatmay be displayed by a PC or personal digital assistant calendarapplication. Daily schedule 103 is a representation of the specificevents scheduled for a particular day by a user. Database 101 containscalendar files storing the above information with respect to each suchuser for later use by this or other users, such as within data file 104.Moreover, these files are typically updated each time a user alters theevents scheduled in the electronic calendar. As such, not only may anyuser keep track of events scheduled with respect to her/himself, butshe/he may also keep apprised of other user's scheduled events.

Taking advantage of this cache of information with respect to eventsscheduled for individual users, and thus their availability within theoffice, the present invention operates to extract specific informationcorresponding to a particular user. Translator 105 of the presentinvention provides a useful data interface between the electroniccalendar application and voice mail or call processing system byextracting user information from database 101 and providing thatinformation to a communication system database, such as throughsubscriber database management 106.

Translator 105 is preferably adapted to readily recognize the datastructure of data file 104 of the particular calendar application used.For example, translator 105 may be provided with information specific tothe data structure of a particular calendar application and thereby opendata file 104 and directly extract information useful in the operationof the communication system. Alternatively, translator 105 may open datafile 104 and browse its contents in order to intelligently parse usefulinformation therefrom. Upon extracting information from data file 104,translator 105 reformats the data into a format that can be used by acommunication system such as a voice mail or call processing system.

Subscriber database management program 106 may store the userinformation extracted by translator 105 in database 108, such as forfuture use by the communication system. Additionally, subscriberdatabase management program 106 may provide the data directly tocommunication system applications 107 for real-time use.

Accordingly, when changes are made within a PC application, such as tocalendar 102 or schedule 103, and stored within data file 104,translator 105 extracts and reformats the new information. Thereafter,subscriber database management program 106 modifies parameters of thevoice mail or call processing applications 107 to ensure applications107 are properly executed according to the updated information.

A preferred embodiment of the steps of translator 105 is illustrated asa flow diagram in FIG. 3. At step 301, translator 105 monitors data file104 for the appearance of new information with respect to a user. Itshall be appreciated that monitoring for new information may beaccomplished by any number of methods known in the art. For example,translator 105 may reference file directory or file attributeinformation in order to detect a change or alteration of informationwithin data file 104. Alternatively, translator 105 may maintaininformation with respect to the contents of data file 104 for periodiccomparison and, thus, detection of modification.

It shall be appreciated that if no new information is detected in datafile 104 there is no need for translator 105 to extract information fromdata file 104. Therefore, in the absence of new information, translator105 continues to monitor data file 104 for modified information. Ofcourse, where it is advantageous to provide the communication systemdata when not having been updated, translator 105 can extract theappropriate information regardless of the aforementioned determination.

Upon detecting new information within data file 104, translator 105proceeds to parse or extract any information useful to the communicationsystem from data file 104 (step 302). Information parsing according to apreferred embodiment of translator 105 operates to disregard PCapplication information which is not desired or not useful to theoperation of the associated communication system.

Precisely what information, if any, which is or is not desired or usefulto the communication system will depend on a number of factors. Forexample, it is expected that time information will generally be usefulto the communication system. Therefore, the fact that the user isdemarcated as busy during the time blocks from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.and from 12:00 p.m. to 13:00 p.m. in calendar entry 103 of FIG. 1 willtypically be parsed for provision to the communication system. However,calendar entry 103 also includes information which may be superfluous.The fact that the user is in a meeting with David or at lunch with Sandymay or may not be useful.

Depending on the level of sophistication desired of the informationinterchanged by the information and communication systems, information,such as the aforementioned lunch with Sandy, may be utilized in a numberof ways. For example, the fact that the user is scheduled to be atlunch, as opposed to a meeting or other business related event, may beutilized by the present invention in order to make determinations as tothe content of information to be provided to the communication system.As discussed in more detail below, the present invention may provide analternate phone number, such as a pager number, knowing that animportant business function would not be disrupted by a forwarded callduring the scheduled event. Similarly, the fact that the meeting isscheduled with David may indicate that it is desired to forward calls toan extension associated with David. Accordingly, the translator anddatabase management application of the present invention operate toproperly parse and supplement or manipulate the information to result inthe appropriate functionality.

After a determination of information to be extracted from the data file,reformatting of data is performed at step 303 for provision to thecommunication system. Depending on the file and data structure of the PCapplication, the data stored in data file 104 may appear in a formforeign to the communication system. Translator 105 operates tomanipulate the parsed information to be presented in a form compatiblewith the communication system. For example, the time informationillustrated in calendar entry 103 is shown in twenty-four hour format(military time) rather than twelve hour format. Therefore, where acommunication system requires such information to be provided in analternative format, translator 105 manipulates the data to result in thedesired information format.

Similarly, particular instruction strings, whether embodied inparticular command structures, character sets, or even tone sequences,may be required in order to provide the information to the communicationsystem. Accordingly, translator 105 provides information formatting tomeet such communication system requirements at step 303.

Thereafter, at step 304, the translator provides the reformattedinformation to the communication system database management system ofthe present invention. Of course, rather than being discrete modules asillustrated in FIG. 1, translator 105 and database management system 106may be embodied as a single unit.

Although the steps for extracting information from a single data fileare illustrated, it shall be appreciated that the present invention maybe utilized to extract such information from a plurality of files. Forexample, it is envisioned that multiple calendar data files, each beingassociated with a different user, may be utilized in order to provideuser information to a communication system. Here the steps illustratedin FIG. 3 may simply be repeated for each such data file.

Of course, to properly associate the data file information with aparticular user of the communication system, in order that the presentinvention may associate information contained therein with theparticular communication devices for which routing changes should bemade, correlation information may need to be provided. For example, acorrelation table (not shown) could be created which associates aparticular data file of the information system with a particulartelephone extension of the communication system. Likewise, particulardata sets stored within a data file may be associated with a particularuser and/or a particular communication device of the communicationsystem. However, in order to simplify the concepts involved with thepresent invention, it shall be understood that the information extractedfrom database 101 by translator 105 is associated with a particularuser, or users, when provided to database management system 106.

A preferred embodiment of the steps of database management system 106 isillustrated as a flow diagram in FIG. 4. At step 401, databasemanagement system 106 accepts information as provided by translator 105.Thereafter, at step 402 it is determined if the information provided bytranslator 105 should be provided to the communication system inreal-time. Such a determination may be based on considerations as to thetimeliness of the information. For example, where the information parsedfrom calendar 102 by translator 105 is relevant to the current operationof the communication system, the information may be immediately providedto the communication system (step 403). Such real-time information mightinclude modification of a user's schedule to reflect their currentattendance of a meeting and, thus, the need for calls to immediately beforwarded to a device other than an office extension.

However, where the information parsed from calendar 102 by translator105 is relevant to, for example, a very distant date, it may not bedesirable to immediately provide this information to the communicationsystem. Conceivably, this information may be altered prior to its beingrelevant to the operation of the communication system. As such, itsimmediate provision to the communication system would require subsequentmanipulation upon the information being changed. Similarly, thecommunication system may not be adapted to accept information withrespect to operations at such a distant date. Therefore, databasemanagement system 106 may store this information within a database, suchas database 108, for later provision to the communication system.Thereafter, database management system 106 may periodically retrieveinformation from database 108 in order to timely provide the informationcontained therein to the communication system.

Having been provided information with respect to a user beingunavailable between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., when thecommunication system receives a call for that particular user at, forexample, 7:00 a.m. the call processing application would know that theuser is unavailable, i.e., in a meeting, and would therefore presumethat she/he did not want to be disturbed. Therefore, instead of routingthe call through to the user's office phone number, the call processingapplication might direct the call to the user's voice mail.

Moreover, additional codes (not shown) could also be used to indicatewhether a particular event could be interrupted by telephone calls. Forexample, the system could be instructed to always direct calls to voicemail during client meetings, but allow office calls during staffmeetings.

The above example utilizes information requiring initializationcorrelating certain codes, or shorthand notations, with particularinformation in order to properly provide data to the communicationsystem. However, it shall be appreciated that the correlation ofinformation with respect to particular users need not be utilized. Forexample, the present invention may include the ability to genericallydetermine, such as through the use of thesaurus type data, the meaningor significance of a particular entry in schedule 103. Thereafter, basedupon this determination, the translator may provide particularinformation to the communication system. For example the entry "MTG,"illustrated in schedule 103 of FIG. 1, may be interpreted to meanmeeting through reference to thesaurus type data. Similarly, the entry"DAVID" may be referenced to a list of in-house users to determine thatthe meeting is with staff rather than a client. Accordingly,determinations as to the propriety of interrupting certain events couldbe determined without requiring additional information entry.

Additionally, database 108 may contain other information about eachuser. For example, information with respect to a preferred defaultdevice in the event of user unavailability could be provided through theuse of a table such as routing table 112. Such call routing informationmay be utilized by the communication system directly or through periodicprovision thereto by database management system 106, as discussed above.

In a preferred embodiment of routing table 112, particular devices towhich calls should be forwarded are associated with specific blocks oftime. These devices may include a primary device, as well as alternativerouting for urgent calls and the like. For instance, between midnightand 6:00 a.m. voice mail may be the primary target for all calls,however, if there is an urgent call, it may be forwarded to the user'spager.

Additionally, routing table 112 may provide for routing to multipledevices in an attempt to contact a user. For example, between 6:00 a.m.and 8:00 a.m., the system may forward a call to the user's car phone,mobile phone and pager. These devices may be called sequentially orsimultaneously. Alternatively, a caller may be prompted, such as througha voice response unit (VRU), as to which option the caller would prefer.Moreover, if these numbers are not successful in contacting the user,the system may direct the call to the user's voice mail.

It shall be appreciated that routing table 112 is provided as defaultrouting information for use by the communication system in the absenceof additional or superseding information. According to the presentinvention the call routing information, as provided to the communicationsystem, is altered automatically when the PC based calendar applicationis updated. For example, if the user indicates on the electroniccalendar that a particular meeting is scheduled between 9:00 a.m. and10:00 a.m. for the current day, then calendar 102 and/or schedule 103are changed. These changes are recorded in database 101 and areextracted, in real-time as described above, into the subscriber databasemanagement system 106. Thereafter, database management system 106updates the information available to communication system applications107, such as through communicating the information thereto or byupdating the user information stored in database 108, as appropriate.The updating of routing table 112 to reflect the entries of schedule 103are shown in the override column of routing table 112.

Additional information may also be stored in database 108. For example,a phone number directory, such as directory 111, may be associated witha user in order to provide a list of preferred or default phone numbersfor use by the system. Directory 111 may contain a standardized list ofcommonly used phone numbers, such as the home, car, mobile phone andpager numbers shown. Alternatively, directory 111 could contain anarbitrary list of phone numbers selected by each user. Additionally, thelist could include alternates such as vacation home, other cars, otheroffices or facsimile machine phone numbers and even e-mail addresses orthe like.

Preferably, the phone numbers in directory 111 include a referencenumber, for example "#A", which allows the user to reference specificnumbers such as by using a shorthand notation. The use of such ashorthand notation would obviate the need for the more lengthy labelingof the phone numbers using english language abbreviations. Of course,either or both methods may be utilized according to the presentinvention, if desired.

In addition to the use of directory 111 by routing table 112 for properrouting of a user's calls, directory 111 may also be utilized directlyby a user. For example, a user may indicate that calls received during aparticular event should be routed to a particular device irrespective ofthe default indication provided within routing table 112. Directingattention again to FIG. 1, schedule 103 includes a meeting scheduledfrom 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. A user may not wish calls received duringthis particular meeting to be routed as indicated in routing table 112,but may instead wish to be notified via pager.

According to the present invention, a user may designate a particularphone number or routing scheme that the communication system should use.In the example of FIG. 1, indicated between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. onschedule 103, a meeting is scheduled with David. Additionally, the userhas included the shorthand notation "#E" in the text of the event.Therefore, if a call for this particular user is received during themeeting with David, the call would be bypassed immediately to the pageras indicated by directory 111. Likewise, during lunch, scheduled between12:00 p.m. and 13:00 p.m., the notation "#F" would cause the system toroute calls to the user's voice mail directly.

In addition to the information provided by directory 111, a user may bepermitted to indicate a specific location or phone number to which todirect a call. A particular alpha sequence, "#G" for example, followedby location or phone number information could be utilized to overridedefault information such as that provided in routing table 112.Accordingly, a user could directly plug a telephone number into the textof the electronic calendar, i.e., "#G 555-1212," and the communicationsystem would then route calls to that particular phone number during theassociated period of time.

Moreover, this override information does not have to be a phone number.It could be another set of route preferences instead. For example, acode, such as "#H," could indicate a sequence that would forward callsto a car phone first, a mobile phone second, a pager third and thendefault back to voice mail.

Alternatively, the system might analyze the activity notations in orderto determine a user's preferences. For example, an activity notation of"LUNCH" could cause all calls to be routed to voice mail, while meetingscould cause all calls to be routed to pagers.

It shall be appreciated, therefore, that the user has not only beenenabled to override the default device to which calls would otherwise berouted, but according to the present invention the user has been able todo so without the need to modify the operation of the PC basedapplication.

Indeed, by simply making annotations in a PC based application, here anelectronic calendar, the information is automatically extracted andtranslated by translator 105 and made available to subscriber databasemanagement system 106 in real-time so that call routing by thecommunication system is properly modified.

The use of notations within the schedule information provides anadvantage in that the calling party's call may be efficiently routedwithout the caller having to listen to messages and make selections. Ofcourse, a method could be provided in order to allow the caller overridethe call routing, such as by instructing the caller to push a certainsequence of buttons thereby being able to redirect the call to analternate destination.

It should be noted that while a PC based application may be specificallyadapted to handle call routing or other communication systemfunctionality, the preferred embodiment of the present inventionutilizes a general purpose PC based application, i.e., one notspecifically adapted for communication system functions. As such, thepresent invention provides a transparent interface with currentlyexisting information systems having only simple codes or notationsassociated with the information contained therein.

Moreover, as the information system is linked via the present inventionto the communication system through database 101, it is also possible toprovide information from the communication system to the informationsystem, such as transferring information pertaining to calls incoming toa particular user into the PC based application. For example, in asimple simplest situation, an electronic calendar could be updated toshow the number of calls that came in during any period of time for aparticular user. Here a user accessing his or her calendar could see bya number next to a certain time that a certain number of calls have comein and, perhaps, even where they were routed. This allows a user toobtain information about the calls without requiring access to thecommunication system.

Furthermore, the two-way data exchange between database 101 andsubscriber database management system 106, may be utilized to set upcall management applications to perform functions like schedulingappointments via the telephone that would appear automatically on theappropriate user's calendar. For example, where a caller desires to setup an appointment with a user, a VRU application could be used to elicita series of DTMF or voice responses in order to schedule appointmentswith a user. These responses could then be transitioned, throughdatabase management system 106 and translator 105, to update data file104 automatically. This information would then appear on the appropriateuser's calendar.

Eliciting information from a caller could be done by a series ofinteractive queries, such as the type of meeting the caller desires, theamount of time desired for the meeting, and then allowing the caller toselect from blocks of time available for the particular type of meeting(it shall be appreciated that information with respect to the user'savailability of time is available according to the present inventionthrough reference to the user's electronic calendar).

Directing attention to FIG. 5, a typical call flow for allowing a callerto set an appointment is shown. The call may arrive at this call flowdirectly, or may be routed to the appointment call flow as a result of acondition, such as a desired user being unavailable. In a preferredembodiment, the caller is prompted with a number of call handlingoptions (step 501). These options may include terminating the call,leaving a voice mail message for the user, paging the user, setting anappointment with the user and the like. Prompting the caller may includeaudibly announcing the options to the caller or any other form ofprompting appropriate for the communication devices being utilized.

The caller's selection is accepted and a branching decision made as tohow to properly handle the call (step 502). For example, where thecaller chooses to leave a voice mail message, the call may be routed toa voice mail system as indicated at step 503. Similarly, where thecaller chooses to terminate the call, the branching decision wouldresult in an end of the call flow.

However, where the caller selects setting an appointment, the call flowproceeds with steps to negotiate an appointment. At step 504, the calleris prompted for information regarding the desired appointment. Thescript illustrated asks the caller to "please enter the time you wouldprefer." However, it shall be appreciated that eliciting appointmentinformation may include information in addition to a time at which theappointment should occur. For example, the caller could be prompted asto a desired length of the appointment. A script for such a query mightappear as "press 1 for 15 minutes, 2 for half an hour, and 3 for anhour." Additionally, a caller may be prompted as to a type ofappointment desired. Such a query might be used to schedule similarappointments together, for example.

After prompting the caller for a preferred time, the system then acceptsthe caller's responses (step 505). For example, DTMF tones may bemonitored to determine a date and time entered numerically by thecaller. Of course, any number of means may be utilized to accept thecaller's responses including voice recognition and the like.

Rather than eliciting from the caller a preferred appointment time, thesystem could operate to announce the time slots available for aparticular user. However, it shall be appreciated that, for privacyreasons, it may not be desirable to announce a user's schedule tocallers. Therefore, the preferred embodiment utilizes a dialogue whichnegotiates an appointment time nearest to a caller's chosen appointmenttime.

Having accepted the caller's preferences as to a desired appointment,this information is then compared with the user's available time slots(step 506). It shall be appreciated that, because the present inventionprovides access between the information system and the communicationsystem, information such as times demarcated as available within theelectronic calendar may be browsed. Therefore, the system may determineif the caller's desired time slot is available or, in the alternative,an available time slot nearest the caller's desired time slot.

Upon making a determination as to the availability of a particular timeslot, a dialogue is presented to confirm that the user's available timeis acceptable with the caller (step 507). If the caller is not amenableto the available time, the relevant call flow steps are repeated inorder to negotiate an agreeable appointment time.

However, if the caller accepts the available appointment time, she/he isthen prompted for an optional recorded message possibly including thecaller's name and details as to the appointment. This recorded messagemay be attached to the appropriate calendar entry, such as where theinformation system provides for inclusion of sound information with thecalendar program. Alternatively, through the use of voice recognitiontechnology, the caller's message may be stored within the calendar as adata entry. Of course, in the alternative to, or in addition to, theabove caller message, the system could utilize information availablefrom automatic number information (ANI) in order to provide the userwith information about the caller.

Upon successfully negotiating an appointment with a caller and elicitingany accompanying information, the system proceeds to update the user'scalendar to reflect the appointment. The updating of the user's calendaris accomplished through the use of the translator discussed above inorder to integrate the appointment information within the user'scalendar file. In this way the system operates to designate on thecalendar the appointment set via telephone.

Alternatively, the system could operate to maintain a queue ofappointment requests rather than automatically updating a user'sschedule. The user could then dialogue with the system and eitherconfirm or decline appointments at will rather than allowing callers toarbitrarily fill up the user's calendar with appointments. In such asystem the caller could leave a number, or the caller's number could beautomatically determined through the use of ANI, for an appointmentconfirmation call back. Additionally, the caller's number could be putright into the calendar and the system automatically call back toconfirm or the subscriber could call back to confirm, depending upon theconfiguration and the system leads.

Moreover, the present invention may be utilized to disseminateinformation via the communication system. For example, a user of thecalendar application could call in and obtain information aboutappointments or scheduled events. Additionally, the user could scheduleadditional events through an interface similar to that described abovefor callers to schedule appointments. As such a user could retrievecalendar information, such as when and where a next meeting is to takeplace, and/or schedule appointments without actually having to directlyaccess the information system.

Furthermore, through the integration of the information andcommunication systems, the present invention is capable of providing theuser's information in any number of formats. For example, through theuse of the above mentioned translator and database management systems,the present invention may provide a condensed view of the calendarinformation to the user's alphanumeric pager. Likewise, the informationmay be provided to the user by a facsimile device or e-mail systemaccessible by the communication or information system.

Moreover, dissemination of the user's information may be automatic,rather than upon the user's demand. For example, the system could beprogrammed to transmit to an alphanumeric pager every morning at sixo'clock a condensed calendar of a user's events for that day.

Directing attention to FIG. 6, a high level flow diagram fordisseminating a user's calendar information is shown. As describedabove, the dissemination of the user's information may be initiated in anumber of ways. Here, box 601 indicates that the dissemination has beenautomatically initiated at a preselected time of day. The information asto when to automatically disseminate information may be stored by thesystem such as within database 108 under control of database managementsystem 106 described above. Relevant information stored in database 108might include days and times for which dissemination is to occur, alongwith a device to which the dissemination is to occur. This informationmight also include user preferences as to the information to include inthe dissemination as well as a desired format for the presentation ofthe information.

Box 602 indicates that the dissemination has been demanded by a user.The user may, for example, phone the communication system and, throughthe use of a voice response unit and associated dialogue, indicate thatdissemination of information is desired.

Once the desire to have information disseminated is determined, thesystem operates to get the user's media preference (box 603). The user'smedia preference may be determined by the device through which the useris requesting dissemination, by querying the user, through reference toinformation stored in a database, or the like. Of course, the system mayalso operate to get other information relevant to the dissemination ofinformation, such as a date for which information is desired, oridentification of particular information to be disseminated.

Thereafter, the system operates to retrieve the relevant information fordissemination (box 604). This information may be retrieved directly fromthe information system, such as through the use of the translatordescribed above, or may be retrieved from intermediate storage such as adatabase under control of the database management system describedabove.

Once the relevant data is available for dissemination, the systembranches depending on the media preference selected by the user. Wheredissemination via pager is selected, for example, the information iscondensed, possibly using shorthand codes, in order to fit in thedisplay space available to the pager (box 605). Thereafter, the systemoperates to transmit the information, such as by dialing the appropriatepager number and transmitting the information.

Condensing of the information is useful when being presented via pageras typically an alphanumeric pager only has approximately 256 charactersin a pager packet. Alternatively, the information could be sent over aseries of pages, in order to present the information in a richer format.

Where dissemination via e-mail is selected, the information is formattedfor e-mail transmission (box 607). This format may be graphical ortextual, depending on the particular e-mail system, and may include anynumber of user stylistic preferences. For example, the user may specifya columnar format for which information should be presented when ine-mail format and store this information for later use by the system.Once formatted, the information is sent to the proper e-mail address asindicated by the user (box 608).

Similarly, when dissemination is to occur by facsimile, the informationis formatted for facsimile transmission (box 609). As facsimile devicestransmit a digitized image, the system operates to convert theinformation into a form representative of a desired image. As withe-mail above, the user may specify preferences as to how this imageshould appear. For example, a rich graphic format, representative of apaper calendar with the information indicated thereon, could beutilized. Once formatted, the information is sent to a proper facsimiledevice through dialing the device (box 610) and transmitting the image(box 611).

Where audio dissemination of the information is desired, such as over atypical telephone, the system operates to connect to the propercommunication device (box 612). Connection with the communication devicemay include dialing an appropriate phone number, awaiting an answer, andpossibly even dialoging with the person answering to ensure that it isthe user. Of course if the device is already connected, such as wherethe telephone through which a user is demanding the information is alsothe telephone through which the information is to be disseminated, theconnecting step may be eliminated.

Once connection is established with the communication device, the systemoperates to audibly reproduce the information, such as through the useof text to speech technology, by playing a combination of text to speechand recorded prompts or messages (boxes 613 and 614). Of course, theinformation may not only include the information stored within aparticular application, such as the aforementioned calendar, but mayalso include associated information. For example caller messagesassociated with particular appointments may be disseminated along withthe relevant other information.

Although the present invention and its advantages have been described indetail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions andalterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A first system for providing data availablewithin a second system for utilization within a third system, whereinone of said second and third systems includes a communication system andthe other one of said second and third systems includes an informationprocessing system, said first system comprising:means for determining aportion of data available within said second system useful forutilization within said third system; means for obtaining saiddetermined portion of said data available within said second system,wherein said data obtained from said second system is associated with anapplication program unaffiliated with said third system; means formanipulating said obtained data, wherein said manipulated data isformatted for provision to said third system; means for providing saidmanipulated data to said third system; and means for integrating saidprovided data into data available within said third system.
 2. The firstsystem of claim 1, wherein said second system includes an informationprocessing system and said third system includes a communication system.3. The first system of claim 2, wherein said data provided to said thirdsystem is operable to modify the operation of said communication system.4. The first system of claim 3, wherein said communication systemincludes an automatic call director, and wherein said operation modifiedby said data is routing of a call.
 5. The first system of claim 2,wherein at least a portion of said data provided to said third system ispassed to a caller utilizing said communication system.
 6. The firstsystem of claim 5, wherein said data as passed to said caller comprisesa human understandable representation of said data stored in said secondsystem.
 7. The first system of claim 6, wherein said humanunderstandable representation of data is formatted for reception by acommunication device selected from the group consisting of:a telephone;a facsimile machine; an e-mail system; and an alphanumeric pager.
 8. Thefirst system of claim 6, further comprising:means for passing said humanunderstandable representation to a telephone, a facsimile machine, ane-mail system, and an alphanumeric pager.
 9. The first system of claim2, wherein said application program is an electronic calendar.
 10. Thefirst system of claim 9, wherein said data obtained from said secondsystem includes information with respect to a schedule stored by saidelectronic calendar.
 11. The first system of claim 1, wherein saidsecond system includes a communication system and said third systemincludes an information processing system, and wherein said dataobtained from said second system is directed to an application programunaffiliated with said communication system.
 12. The first system ofclaim 11, wherein said data provided to said third system is operable tomodify a data file associated with said application program storedwithin said third system, and wherein said modified data file appears tohave been modified by said application program.
 13. The first system ofclaim 11, wherein said application program is an electronic calendar.14. The first system of claim 11, wherein said data obtained from saidsecond system includes information with respect to a schedule stored bysaid electronic calendar.
 15. A method for providing data availablewithin a first system for utilization within a second system, whereinone of said first and second systems includes a communication system andthe other one of said first and second systems includes an informationprocessing system, said method comprising the steps of:determining aportion of data available within said first system useful forutilization within said second system; obtaining said determined portionof said data available within said first system, wherein said dataobtained from said first system is associated with an applicationprogram unaffiliated with said second system; manipulating said obtaineddata, wherein said manipulated data is formatted for provision to saidsecond system; and providing said manipulated data to said secondsystem; and integrating said provided data into data available withinsaid second system.
 16. The method of claim 15, wherein said dataprovided to said second system is operable to modify the operation ofsaid communication system.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein saidmodified operation of said communication system includes the routing ofcalls.
 18. The method of claim 15, further comprising the stepof:passing said at least a portion of said obtained data to a user ofsaid communication system.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein saidpassing step is operable to select a delivery device from at least atelephone, a facsimile machine, an e-mail system, and a pager.
 20. Themethod of claim 15, wherein said application is an electronic calendarprogram.
 21. The method of claim 15, wherein said application program isan electronic schedule.
 22. An interface system for providing datastored within an information processing system to a communicationsystem, wherein said stored data is associated with a particularapplication program which is unaffiliated with said communicationsystem, said interface system comprising:means for determining whatportion of said data stored within said information processing system issuitable for utilization within said communication system; means foracquiring at least a subset of said determined portion of said datastored within said information processing system; means for formattingsaid acquired data for provision to said communication system; and meansfor providing said formatted data to said communication system, whereinsaid provided data is associated with additional data available to saidcommunication system.
 23. The interface system of claim 22, furthercomprising:means for determining that said data stored within saidinformation processing system has been modified, wherein said acquiringmeans and said formatting means are operable automatically with respectto said modified data.
 24. The interface system of claim 22, whereinsaid data provided to said communication system is operable to alter anoperational aspect of said communication system.
 25. The interfacesystem of claim 24, wherein said altered operational aspect modified bysaid data is selected from the group consisting of:call routinginformation; and communication device information.
 26. The interfacesystem of claim 22, wherein at least a portion of said data provided tosaid communication system is transmitted to a user of said communicationsystem.
 27. The interface system of claim 26, wherein transmission ofsaid data is operable upon demand of said user of said communicationsystem.
 28. The interface system of claim 26, wherein transmission ofsaid data is operable upon the occurrence of a preselected event asselected by a user of said information processing system.
 29. Theinterface system of claim 26, wherein said data transmitted to said userresults in a human understandable representation of said data stored insaid information processing system.
 30. The interface system of claim29, wherein said human understandable representation of data isdelivered by a communication device selected from the group consistingof:a telephone; a facsimile machine; an e-mail system; and analphanumeric pager.
 31. The interface system of claim 29, furthercomprising:means for transmitting said data to said user via atelephone, a facsimile machine, an e-mail system, and a pager.
 32. Theinterface system of claim 22, wherein said application program is anelectronic calendar.
 33. The interface system of claim 32, wherein saiddata acquired from said information processing system includesinformation with respect to a schedule stored within said electroniccalendar.
 34. An interface system for providing data input into acommunication system to an information processing system, wherein saidinput data is provided to said information processing system forassociation with a data file stored for use with a particularapplication program which is unaffiliated with said communicationsystem, said interface system comprising:means for eliciting said inputdata from a user of said communication system; means for formatting saidinput data for provision to said information processing system; meansfor determining a portion of said data file stored within saidinformation processing system associated with said input data; and meansfor providing said formatted data to said information processing system,wherein said data provided to said information processing system isoperable to modify said portion of said data file stored in said datafile as determined by said determining means.
 35. The interface systemof claim 34, further comprising:means for comparing at least a portionof said input data with said determined portion of said data storedwithin said information processing system, wherein said eliciting meansoperates to elicit input data as a function of said compared data. 36.The interface system of claim 34, wherein at least a portion of saidinput data elicited from said user includes data with respect to aschedule of a user of said information processing system.
 37. Theinterface system of claim 34, wherein said application program is anelectronic calendar.
 38. The interface system of claim 37, wherein saideliciting means operates to negotiate an appointment for said user ofsaid communication system with a user of said information processingsystem, and wherein said determined data is associated with a scheduleof said user of said information processing system.
 39. The interfacesystem of claim 38, further comprising;means for said user of saidinformation processing system accepting said negotiated appointment,wherein said user of said information processing system selectivelyallows modification of a schedule recorded by said electronic calendar.40. The interface system of claim 38, wherein said data file includes aschedule recorded by said electronic calendar associated with said userof said information processing system, and wherein said negotiatedappointment is automatically inserted into said schedule.